Single-Word Speech Intelligibility in Children and Adults With Down Syndrome.

Purpose: A single-word identification test was used to study speech production in children and adults with Down syndrome (DS) to determine the developmental pattern of speech intelligibility with an emphasis on vowels.

Method: Speech recordings were collected from 62 participants with DS aged 4-40 years and 25 typically developing participants aged 4-7 years. Panels of 5 adult lay listeners transcribed the speech recordings orthographically, and their responses were scored in comparison with the speakers' target words.

Effects of Aging on Vocal Fundamental Frequency and Vowel Formants in Men and Women.

Purpose: This study reports data on vocal fundamental frequency (f) and the first four formant frequencies (F1, F2, F3, F4) for four vowels produced by speakers in three adult age cohorts, in a test of the null hypothesis that there are no age-related changes in these variables. Participants were 43 men and 53 women between the ages of 20 and 92 years.

Results: The most consistent age-related effect was a decrease in f for women.

Hyoid bone fusion and bone density across the lifespan: prediction of age and sex.

The hyoid bone supports the important functions of swallowing and speech. At birth, the hyoid bone consists of a central body and pairs of right and left lesser and greater cornua. Fusion of the greater cornua with the body normally occurs in adulthood, but may not occur at all in some individuals.

Effect of body position on vocal tract acoustics: Acoustic pharyngometry and vowel formants.

The anatomic basis and articulatory features of speech production are often studied with imaging studies that are typically acquired in the supine body position. It is important to determine if changes in body orientation to the gravitational field alter vocal tract dimensions and speech acoustics. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of body position (upright versus supine) on (1) oral and pharyngeal measurements derived from acoustic pharyngometry and (2) acoustic measurements of fundamental frequency (F0) and the first four formant frequencies (F1-F4) for the quadrilateral point vowels.

Factors associated with the early work experiences of adolescents with severe disabilities.

The early work experiences of a nationally representative sample of youth with severe disabilities (i.e., intellectual disabilities, autism, multiple disabilities) were examined.

Investigating Perceived Institutional Review Board Quality and Function Using the IRB Researcher Assessment Tool.

THE INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD-RESEARCHER ASSESSMENT TOOL (IRB-RAT) was designed to assess the relative importance of various factors to the effective functioning of IRBs. We employed the IRB-RAT to gain insight into the ways in which our IRB is perceived to be deficient by those who routinely interact with our Office of Research Integrity and Protections. Respondents ranked qualities thought to be characteristic of an "ideal" IRB and then compared our IRB to that internal standard.

Sleep disordered breathing and mortality: eighteen-year follow-up of the Wisconsin sleep cohort.

Background: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a treatable but markedly under-diagnosed condition of frequent breathing pauses during sleep. SDB is linked to incident cardiovascular disease, stroke, and other morbidity. However, the risk of mortality with untreated SDB, determined by polysomnography screening, in the general population has not been established.

Correlates of serum C-reactive protein (CRP)--no association with sleep duration or sleep disordered breathing.

Study Objectives: Increasing evidence suggests that alterations in sleep duration are associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality. Additionally, sleep disordered breathing (SDB), which is associated with disturbed nighttime sleep and hypoxemia, may be an independent risk factor for CVD. The inflammatory marker, C-reactive protein (CRP), is an important predictor of CVD.

Association of alcohol consumption and sleep disordered breathing in men and women.

Study Objectives: Experimental evidence indicates that alcohol use near bedtime may exacerbate sleep disordered breathing (SDB). However, scarce research has examined the relation between moderate habitual alcohol use and objectively assessed SDB, and it is unclear whether patients with SDB, or those at risk for SDB, should be counseled to avoid alcohol regardless of proximity to bedtime. In this population-based epidemiology study, our objective is to measure the association of SDB with usual alcohol consumption habits.

Informed consent and subject motivation to participate in a large, population-based genomics study: the Marshfield Clinic Personalized Medicine Research Project.

Background: The objective of this study was to measure subject perspective and reaction to participation in the Personalized Medicine Research Project (PMRP) and to identify factors predicting understanding of the study elements.

Method: Self-administered questionnaires were mailed to 1,593 subjects (10% sample). The questionnaire had three sections: section A consisted of 21 factual questions; section B consisted of 14 questions to assess the level of understanding about the PMRP concepts, and section C asked about the purpose of the PMRP.

Association of sleep apnea and type II diabetes: a population-based study.

Rationale: Cross-sectional association has been reported between sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and insulin resistance, but no prospective studies have been performed to determine whether SDB is causal in the development of diabetes.

Objectives: The purpose of our study was to investigate the prevalence and incidence of type II diabetes in subjects with SDB and whether an independent relationship exists between them.

Methods: A cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis was performed in 1,387 participants of the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort.

Short sleep duration is associated with reduced leptin, elevated ghrelin, and increased body mass index.

Background: Sleep duration may be an important regulator of body weight and metabolism. An association between short habitual sleep time and increased body mass index (BMI) has been reported in large population samples. The potential role of metabolic hormones in this association is unknown.

Menopausal status and sleep-disordered breathing in the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study.

Menopause is considered to be a risk factor for sleep-disordered breathing, but this hypothesis has not been adequately tested. The association of premenopause, perimenopause, and postmenopause with sleep-disordered breathing was investigated with a population-based sample of 589 women enrolled in the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study. Menopausal status was determined from menstrual history, gynecologic surgery, hormone replacement therapy, follicle-stimulating hormone, and vasomotor symptoms.